Birds at Pantanos de Villa, Lima

Baby American Oystercatcher

Blue-black Grassquit

Franklin's Gulls (elegant Terns in background)

Elegant Terns

Black Skimmer with Franklin's Gulls and Elegant Terns

A tired Franklin's Gull visits Fernando Angulo's hand

Peruvian Thick-kneee

Pantanos de Villa, Lima

Inca Terns, Lima

Surely one of the finest looking seabirds, Inca Terns were high on my list of target species in Peru, especially as we were staying in Lima on the first couple of nights, a known good place to see them. There is a little colony on a pier occupied by a restaurant which may be called La Rosa Nautica (my memory for restuarant names is v poor). Anyhow, the managaement of the restaurant (or rather the bouncers outside) had a weird attitude, reluctantly letting us photograph the terns, but banning the use of tripods. I reckon they should rebrand the restaurant and use the Inca Terns as their unique selling point, encouraging all tourists to come and see the wonderful birds and stop for a drink and a meal... In the last phot of the pier, uyou can just about make out the dots of terns on the scaffolding below.

Baby Spectacled Bear, Machu Picchu

Squirrel Monkeys

Squirrel Monkeys are very cute!

Inca Tern battle, Lima

Agami Heron, Sandoval Lake, Peru

Arguably, the world's most lovely heron.

Giant River Otters, Sandoval Lake, Peru

Part of a family of seven we followed in a canoe for some time as they chased and caught piranhas etc. Absolutely wonderful experience. Unfortunately the IS on my 300mm lens had clapped out the previous day, so the shots are not as good as they could have been. Still, happy days...

Curl-crested Aracari

Taken on the canopy walkway of the Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica, Puerto Maldonado, Peru. Not bad for digiscoping, eh?

Water Pipit, again

At March Farmers, Nene Washes, 24.11.12

A couple of waders at Titchwell

Spotted Redshank

Bar-tailed Godwit The Bird Watching team spent the day at Titchwell RSPB yesterday, doing some birding plus photoshoots and the odd video. Here are a couple of waders I digiscoped while there.

Water Pipit at March Farmers

Distant digiscoped record shot. This is species number 183 for my PBC 2012.

From the Archive... No.26

Fulmar (digiscoped), Shetland, June 2008

From the Archive... No. 25

For all your computer needs? The Computer Clinic, Lerwick, Shetland, June 2008.

Waxwing flock

Drinking Waxwing

Video: Dipper in the Findhorn Valley

Lesser Redpoll, Nene Washes RSPB

This was one of a group of about 15 feeding on willowherb seeds (I think) along the central drove this lunchtime. There were other Lesser Redpoll groups doing the same along the drove.

Cranes on Nene Washes RSPB

The full-sized juvenile on the left is probably the same bird which was successfully reared on the Washes reserve this summer by the pair on the right (it is very tall, so most likely a male). I remember when it was one of a pair of tinamou-like fluffy youngsters: one of my best birding memories of the year. When I first came to Peterborough in 2000, Cranes were still very rare visitors. In the last few years they have become year-round residents, and in the last couple of weeks the numbers in the Nene Washes area have risen to the teens.

Great Tit and Coal Tit at Loch Garten RSPB

Great Tit

Coal Tit

Buzzard

A toast to the Red Grouse

Crested Tits at Loch Garten RSPB

King Eider at Burghead